Doe off pellets

[fuzzy9]

I have a bred doe, who's day 28 is the 23rd of this month. She's been eating her pellets very lightly over the last couple weeks. I thought it would pick up after it got cold, as that seems to be the pattern when they go off feed. She LOVES her hay, and waits for her hay at each feeding, and then chows down. She's completely active, very friendly, and everything is really normal otherwise, but she's not eating her pellets, and she's getting more thin that I'd like.

Where should I start with her? I can supplement her with other things, but I'm concerned that she's not getting what she needs mineral wise, and she is bred.

 

[MaggieJ]

I wouldn't worry too much about the minerals... Mineral deficiencies take time to cause problems. You could get her a mineral block or mineralized salt spool to make up the difference. Is there anything different about the pellets? Different brand, new formula, even a new bag around the time she stopped liking them?

A bit of kitchen oatmeal (like Quaker Old Fashioned/Large Flake) might be a good addition and may perk up her appetite. Is the hay grass or alfalfa? If alfalfa she is likely getting enough protein from that.

You could go the route of mixing a little blackstrap molasses with a bit of warm water and drizzling that over her pellets. Blackstrap is full of nutrients and most rabbits love it. But you also could be starting something that might be difficult to end... so it depends how worried you are, I guess.

Edited to add: Now that I think back to when I fed pellets, I had one doe that refused them about halfway through the pregnancy. Never did find out why. The recommendation then from the people on HT was to give her only pellets so that she would be forced to eat them. She did, after about three days, but I don't think I'd handle the problem that way now.

 

[akane]

Oatmeal soaked in liquid horse coat supplement puts on weight very fast. My scrawny doe who I could feel every bit of her spine and see the indent at the end of her ribs is fat and sleek 1 month later by giving her a couple tablespoons a day of soaked oatmeal. That experiment worked great and you could probably mix loose minerals or molasses in to it as well.

 

[fuzzy9]

Well, I've thought about a bad batch of feed, but everyone else is eating. One of my bucks went off feed for a couple days, but I had done some switching around with the bucks, and he wasn't happy about it, but he's settled down now, and eating. I had one other doe do what you said your bred doe did, she was eating less, but right after she kindled, she's chowing down. She never went off feed though. The doe I'm concerned about, this is her first pregnancy, and she's been doing this for too long, she's just not eating her pellets. We've had several new bags since she started this, so it's not like it's one particular new bag.

My hay is grassy horse hay, nice and green, with a bit of alfalfa in it. Not enough to support the protein she needs though. I can easily get alfalfa though, this is cow country around here! :lol:

I have kitchen oatmeal here, and can give her some. Akane.......do you know the brand name of the horse supplement you were giving? I'd definitely be willing to try it.

 

[akane]

Soybean oil, flaxseed oil, lecithin, niacin, b12, natural and artificial apple flavor

I know some people don't like touching anything soy but I think it's better than generic vegetable oil and corn based supplements. I actually got it to replace the vegetable oil in my dog supplement recipe and then decided to try it on a rabbit.

 

[fuzzy9]

Thanks for posting that, I've never heard of it before. Certainly worth a try, but I have to order some.

I wonder, I have a container of whole flax seed in my freezer that I haven't been using. Would it hurt to give her a tiny bit of those to add fat?

 

[MaggieJ]

Flax can be laxative. Very nutritious, but I'm not sure I would try it at the moment. Do you have blackstrap? We make an enriched grain mix from time to time. We put a spoonful of molasses and a spoonful of sunflower (or other) oil in a mug, add an ounce of water and warm in microwave for a few seconds. Then we mix it into a big bowl of whole grains, BOSS, kitchen oatmeal etc. If it is too damp, we dry it off with more grain. You could do the same with pellets, BOSS and oatmeal until the supplement arrives. Just a thought.

 

[akane]

Flax isn't much of a laxative. Like similar seeds such as chia the shell forms a gel when exposed to moisture. That might make things more slippery but it should not dehydrate nor stimulate the intestines like typical laxatives are designed to do and usually does not result in runny stools but stools with a high content of the mucous like gel binding them. I haven't found it to increase or irritate situations with digestive upset or diarrhea even when it's already present. The liquid probably doesn't even have the same effect since it would not make that gel. The soybean oil would probably have a greater impact on firmness of stool.

As a source of fiber mucilage, oral flaxseed (not flaxseed oil) may possess laxative properties, although only one human trial has been conducted for this indication.

Flaxseed oil contains only the alpha-linolenic acid component of flaxseed, and not the fiber or lignan components. Therefore, flaxseed oil may share the purported lipid-lowering properties of flaxseed, but not the proposed laxative or anti-cancer abilities.

http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/flaxse ... t-flaxseed

 

[MaggieJ]

That's good to know, Akane. I stand corrected. It's great stuff, I just have visions of the doe having a second problem added to her lack of appetite for the pellets.

 

[Devon's Mom Lauren]

We feed Flax seed to our rabbits with no issues. Its similar to why egg farmers feed it to their chickens when they want to sell eggs with more Omega 3 in them (which makes them waaaay more expensive) Your rabbit meat will just be healthier!! However it is normal that does go "off feed" a bit just before they kindle.. I wouldn't worry unless she stops drinking. At this point you don't really need a fat doe OR fat Kits as this can cause complications at birthing. Once they are born you can pretty much go "whole hog" on her feed program! Carrying kits takes very little out of the doe; its the milk production that takes its toll.

 

[fuzzy9]

Thank you Lauren.

This has been a couple weeks though, possible a bit more, and I can actually feel her spine all the way down her back. She really feels thin to me. Should she get this thin? This is the first time I've had a doe do this, but I've only been in this since Feb, so I've not yet experienced a whole lot of different situations.

 

[OneAcreFarm]

Flax isn't much of a laxative. Like similar seeds such as chia the shell forms a gel when exposed to moisture. That might make things more slippery but it should not dehydrate nor stimulate the intestines like typical laxatives are designed to do and usually does not result in runny stools but stools with a high content of the mucous like gel binding them. I haven't found it to increase or irritate situations with digestive upset or diarrhea even when it's already present. The liquid probably doesn't even have the same effect since it would not make that gel. The soybean oil would probably have a greater impact on firmness of stool.

As a source of fiber mucilage, oral flaxseed (not flaxseed oil) may possess laxative properties, although only one human trial has been conducted for this indication.

Flaxseed oil contains only the alpha-linolenic acid component of flaxseed, and not the fiber or lignan components. Therefore, flaxseed oil may share the purported lipid-lowering properties of flaxseed, but not the proposed laxative or anti-cancer abilities.

http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/flaxse ... t-flaxseed

One thing I do know is that if you are not used to flaxseed, it will give you terrible gas and bloating. Wonder if it would do the same for rabbits?

 

[MaggieJ]

I'm not sure, Shannon. I've used a fair bit of flax seed myself because I eat a low-carb diet. What I've found is that you need a lot of water with it and that it acts as a bulk laxative by adding fibre. But perhaps the small quantities one would give a rabbit would not have the same effect. I'd certainly suggest going easy with it.

 

[Devon's Mom Lauren]

Yes no more than a tablespoon or so at at time.. sorry forgot to put that in my other post!